1.d4! The Chess Bible by Armin Juhasz

1.d4! The Chess Bible by Armin Juhasz

In his first book (we anticipate many more), the young Hungarian author makes a worthy attempt to walk his readers through a complete 1.d4 opening repertoire. Yet while he is taking you thru the opening he never forgets the other phases of the game. As a result, the subsequent middlegame and endgame elements are remarkably well organized benefiting both beginner and advanced players to acquire powerful skills with 1.d4! In what way is this book special? How can it make someone a better player? These are perfectly legitimate questions and whenever I buy a new chess book, I essentially ask the same ones. The short answer is that this book will give you a comprehensive understanding of the chosen openings. Unlike many other books with a similar profile, it goes beyond pure theory and in addition to giving a great deal of practical advice, it touches on issues such as sample games, typical tactical strikes and, in the last chapter, endgames.   On top of all this, a homework section enables you to immerse yourself in a given topic and achieve an in-depth understanding of it in your own time. We follow this structure because as a coach, I know how important it is to receive as much guidance as possible on a new opening. Only this can lead to true mastery. Let me recommend this book to any player who wants to learn more about closed openings, adopt a new approach to chess and build up a thorough and sophisticated repertoire.  I have tested these openings with my students with good results, so I believe this book is suitable for anyone with an Elo rating from 1600-2500.

"All beginnings are difficult" is an old saying, and this is true as well from my review of this bookI am reminded of the story where an elderly woman says to her surgeon, "Doctor, I am so afraid as this is my first operation." The doctor winks and says, "Don't worry it will be my first operation as well!" So you and I have this book in front of us as the surgery and the work of my young friend and former student IM Armin Juhász is the surgeon. I remember vividly the founding of Géza Maróczy Chess School in Budapest in 2006. The School was especially successful during its first years. Following the examples of such outstanding Hungarian players as László Szabó, Gedeon Barcza or Géza Maróczy himself, a number of excellent young players including Benjamin Gledura and Richard Rapport (currently ranked 13th in the world) have debuted their talents at the school. It was also at the Maróczy school where Ármin Juhász studied as well. Was it easy for these students? Was it easy for us coaches? I think the answer is a clear yes. We had the privilege to invite as guest lecturers such internationally known Hungarian chess greats as Pál Benkő, Lajos Portisch, Zoltán Ribli,   Gyula Sax, István Csom, (members of the gold medalist team at the 1978 Chess Olympiad in Buenos Aires), and JuditPolgár, Zsuzsa Polgár, Zsuzsa Verőci and Mária Ivánka. Our young students had the opportunity to learn chess from no lesser names than these. And yes, IM ÁrminJuhász, who became the youngest FIDE Trainer in Europe in 2018, was among these students. In his first book (we anticipate many more), the young Hungarian author makes a worthy attempt to walk his readers through a complete 1.d4 opening repertoire. Yet while he is taking you thru the opening he never forgets the other phases of the game. As a result, the subsequent middlegame and endgame elements are remarkably well organized benefitting  both beginner and advanced players to acquire powerful skills with 1.d4. In addition, Ármin pays adequate attention to those tactical motifs that are quite significant in the dynamic games of many contemporary players. Clearly he keeps in mind the German master Richard Teichmann's observation that “Chess is 99% tactics”. This complex book follows a clear structure with a large number of games and positions from outstanding players and various historical eras. Then he spices all this up in the analyses sections with tricks and insights mainly associated with the so-called Hungarian chess school tradition.  I heartily recommend this book not only to those who are eager to boost their ELO rating (Did you know that Dr. Árpád Élő was an American professor of Hungarian birth?) but also to coaching colleagues (including my fellow GMs), because 1.d4! The Chess Bible is an excellent source of great examples and useful drills. I will certainly use it in my own coaching practice.  Lastly, please be aware that the author comes from a dedicated chess family. His older brother, IM Kristóf Juhász is 27 and achieved his first GM norm in 2020, the year of the pandemic. His younger brother FM Ágoston Juhász (aged 15) was a U14 National Champion.   See you at the Chess Olympiad in Budapest in 2024!  József Horváth Grand Master and FIDE Senior Trainer Budapest, January 2021 
In summary, if you play 1.d4 then this book will provide a unique insight into many typical structures and plans and if you play the King’s Indian, Grünfeld, Benoni, Slav or the black side of the Catalan then this book will be beneficial. In many ways this book has provided a fresh approach to teaching openings and, tells us a great deal about the author in the process. It is clear as daylight that IM Armin Juhasz is a talented trainer and author with a great passion for teaching. We are convinced that his time must be in high demand! John Upham, British Chess News, Cove, Hampshire, 27th April, 2021
Juhasz has written his book with two ideas in mind. The first is to provide non-professionals with a repertoire against the majority of Black’s answers to 1.d4. The second is to explain the typical ideas and plans for both sides through the use of model games which may or may not be connected to the intended repertoire.  One doesn’t normally see the Catalan recommended for non-professionals (the target audience for 1.d4! The Chess Bible is roughly 2000-2300), but like Christof Sielecki’s 1.d4 Keep it Simple  where the move order 1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 d5 3.g3 is advocates, this book has some cleverly thought out ideas to sidestep massive amounts of theory. In this case the preferred move orders are 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.Bg2 dxc4 5.Qa4+ Nbd7 6.Qxc4 a6 7.Be3 and 4…Be7 5.Nf3 0-0 6.Nbd2. Objectively the latter doesn’t promise a lot against reasonable play, but kudos to Juhasz for designing a Catalan repertoire which is so manageable. Playing the Catalan via this move order with 3.g3, instead of 3.Nf3, and advocating 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 e6 4.Nc3 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 6.e4 g6 7.h3 Bg7 8.Nf3 0-0 9.Bd3 against the Modern Benoni, means White will need an extra Benoni/English line after 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 c5. Additionally, 1.d4! The Chess Bible is not one stop shopping for those desiring a complete repertoire playing 1.d4. The Dutch, Benko Gambit and Queen’s Gambit Accepted are among the Black defenses not covered. These caveats considered, 1.d4! The Chess Bible, is still a good introductory work for its intended audience. IM John Donaldson June 2021.

Europe’s youngest FIDE accredited trainer, IM Armin Juhasz, is an active player and a successful coach living in Budapest, Hungary. Born in 1998 he is currently 22 years of age and earned the IM title when 17. In 2016 he achieved his highest ELO of 2424. Armin has twice won the Hungarian Youth Championship. He was a member of the Hungarian U18 team which won the silver medal at the European Youth Team Championship in 2016. In addition to being an active competitor he is also the owner and CEO of Center Chess School. This thriving start up effort in Budapest has seen outstanding results. Several of his students have won numerous medals on both the world and national stage. Included in this list of success are two Hungarian Championships, on in the U16 and the other in the U14 division. He has also coached a World U12 Champion from the United States.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9789464201116
ISBN 10	9464201118
Title	1.d4! The Chess Bible
Author	Armin Juhasz
Series	Chess Bible
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Paperback
Publisher	Thinkers Publishing
Year published	2021-04-12
Number of pages	280
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.